Finance ministers and central bankers from the G20 advanced and emerging economies expressed strong concern Oct. 16 that high oil prices could decelerate growth and destabilize the global economy as they wrapped up their annual meeting on the outskirts of Beijing.
Reflecting the views of oil-producing countries like Saudi Arabia, one of the participants in the talks, the G20 statement stressed the importance of not just oil producers' efforts, but efforts by oil-consuming nations as well, including the United States, to invest more in oil-refining capacity, pursue alternative energy sources, and promote energy-saving technologies.
The conference also adopted what was called "G20 reform agenda 2005," which set reform targets for each of the participants.